Bishop T. Larry Kirkland Sr., 114th Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, will preach at Myers Chapel AME Church, 1511 Ninth St., at 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 29. The Rev. Martin F. Grizzell, pastor of the church, said Myers Chapel is pleased to welcome Bishop Kirkland, the presiding prelate of the Fifth Episcopal District of the AME Church.
Members will have a lunch from 1:30-3:30 p.m. that day.
Bishop Kirkland was recently reassigned as the 49th Quadrennial Session of the General Conference on July 4 as the Presiding Prelate of the Fifth Episcopal District, which includes 14 states. Prior to being elected and consecrated as the 114th Bishop of the AME Church in 1996, Kirkland served in the Fifth Episcopal District for 20 years as the pastor of Brookins Community AME Church in Los Angeles. He grew the mission church from 12 members into a congregation of more than 8,000 and became affectionately known at “The Down Home Preacher with the Uptown Message.”
Bishop Kirkland is a spiritual giant and a living legacy, Grizzell said. His preaching style and ability to develop strong relationships across denominational and cultural lines have garnered him respect and standing invitations with some of the nation’s greatest ministries. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Alcorn State University, where he was an All-American football player, and a master’s degree from Mississippi State University. He further developed his ministry through higher education at The Claremont School of Theology and California Graduate School of Theology.